PRESIDENT TINUBU APPROVES BILL FOR SETTING UP NATIONAL CENTRE FOR THE CONTROL OF SMALL ARMS AND LIGHT WEAPONS

The National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, said that President Bola Tinubu has assented to the bill for the establishment of the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons. Ribadu made this known at the Workshop on Gender Mainstreaming in Preventing the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons in Nigeria and the West African Sub-region in Abuja. The workshop was organized by the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons.

He was represented by the Director of External Affairs, Office of the National Security Adviser, Amb. Ibrahim Babani. The NSA said that the president’s assent to the bill was a major milestone in the government’s commitment to curbing the proliferation of illegal arms. According to him, this legislative backing strengthens the centre’s mandate and paves the way for more coordinated and decisive action. Ribadu also emphasized the need for gender mainstreaming in preventing the proliferation of small arms and light weapons in the country. He said that the workshop was anchored in key international frameworks, including United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325. According to him, the resolution emphasizes the critical need to protect women from the impacts of conflict while also ensuring their full participation in peace building and security initiatives. “Moreover, the ECOWAS Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons underscores the collective responsibility of our region in curbing the spread of these dangerous weapons, which disproportionately affect women and children in conflict zones.

“The importance of gender mainstreaming in preventing the proliferation of SALW cannot be overstated, as it strengthens our strategies, and ensures that our approach to security is inclusive and sustainable. Ribadu commended the centre for its efforts towards addressing the proliferation of small arms and light weapons in Nigeria. In his opening remarks, the National Coordinator of NCCSALW, retired DIG Johnson Kokumo, said the centre has, in recent times, made some significant achievements in the fight against the illegal proliferation of small arms and light weapons. Kokumo said the centre had, on July 1, retrieved a substantial cache of illegal arms from the Nigeria Customs Service and the subsequent arrest of 10 suspects involved in the illicit importation. He said the suspects were currently being prosecuted by the NCCSALW for illegal importation into Nigeria, prohibited 544 firearms and 112,500 rounds of cartridges, contrary to Section 3(6) of Miscellaneous Offences Act Cap M17 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, among other offences. This, according to him, underscores the centre’s commitment to not only intercepting arms but also ensuring that those responsible for these acts face the full weight of the law. “In addition to the above, the National Centre has retrieved a total of quantity 3,383 decommissioned, unserviceable, obsolete, and illicit small arms and light weapons and 26,749 various calibres of ammunition from the arms bearing agencies of government.

Later in this quarter, NCCSALW would be conducting an Arms Destruction Exercise which is a critical step in ensuring that recovered arms are permanently removed from circulation. Kokumo said the control of small arms and light weapons proliferation was not only a national concern but also a matter of international importance. He said that the illegal flow of small arms and light weapons had devastating consequences, fuelling violence, instability, and insecurity in various parts of the world. He said that gender mainstreaming in SALW control was not only a moral imperative but also a strategic move, considering the grave impact of armed conflict on women and children. This, he said, highlighted the need for a gender-sensitive approach to disarmament and security policies. “This workshop is a significant step in ensuring that gender perspectives are integrated into national and regional strategies for Small Arms and Light Weapons control.